Berman v. Parker

Berman v. Parker
Supreme Court of the United States
Argued October 19, 1954
Decided November 22, 1954
Full case nameBerman et al., Executors v. Parker, et al.
Citations348 U.S. 26 (more)
75 S. Ct. 98; 99 L. Ed. 27; 1954 U.S. LEXIS 1463
Holding
The taking of private property for a public purpose, provided that just compensation is paid, does not violate the Fifth Amendment.
Court membership
Chief Justice
Earl Warren
Associate Justices
Hugo Black · Stanley F. Reed
Felix Frankfurter · William O. Douglas
Harold H. Burton · Tom C. Clark
Sherman Minton
Case opinion
MajorityDouglas, joined by unanimous
Laws applied
U.S. Const. amend. V, District of Columbia Redevelopment Act of 1945

Berman v. Parker, 348 U.S. 26 (1954), is a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court that interpreted the Takings Clause ("nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation") of the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution. The Court voted 8–0[1] to hold that private property could be taken for a public purpose with just compensation. The case laid the foundation for the Court's later important public use cases, Hawaii Housing Authority v. Midkiff, 467 U.S. 229 (1984) and Kelo v. City of New London, 545 U.S. 469 (2005).

Critics of recent occurrences of eminent domain uses trace what they view as property rights violations to this case.

  1. ^ Justice Robert H. Jackson did not participate, as he had died 10 days before oral arguments were heard. Jackson's successor, John Marshall Harlan II, would not take his seat on the Court until March 1955.